A few minutes walk from the Bakhawan Eco-Tourism Park lies the Pina Village. A small group of families dedicate to create the most delicate and intricate material of all, the Pina cloth. There, one will see the pain staking way of how to make the Pina cloth, from the picking to the weaving. A must see to appreciate, understand and know the reason behind it’s high price and value.

Having the Spanish variety of pineapple planted in their backyard, the women carefully pick out the right and perfect leaf they could find. First step, is the “Pagpisi” - extracting the fiber from the leaf using a broken plate. This is done manually because the fibers are very delicate. After getting the first wash out fiber which they call ‘Bastos’, the extracting continues until they are able to get the second fiber which is smoother and finer called ‘Pino’.

Second, they have to wash it with running water and soap while brushing it with a shell to make it smoother. Third is what they call “Pag-pisi” where one will separate the strands of the fiber one by one. This could take hours, but this has to be done. Fourth, is what they call “Pagsug-ot” where fibers are connected using a special kind of knot so as it will still remain smooth and invisible to the naked eye. This procedure is time consuming and painful to the eyes that is why they need to use a black cloth while working with the fibers. Fifth is called “Pinagak”, where the fibers are weighed. Next step is called “Pagtalinyas” or thredding for the horizontal lines and “Pagsab-ong” or wharping for the vertical lines. Each were made with definite counts and lengths. “Paghaboe” is the last and final step in making a pina cloth. It is the intricate and careful weaving of the fibers to make the Pina cloth. With each strand of fiber weaved together, specific counts and ways of weave depends on the style and complexity of the cloth to be produced.

Each women in this village has their own part. Each varies but complements the other. It is a joined effort mixed with culture and heritage; an experience where one can truly see, how patience and cooperation brings out something good and beautiful. And it all happens here, in the Pina Village.